Are you concerned about nuclear waste at Hanford—the most contaminated site in the Western Hemisphere?

With one click, you can weigh-in on an important cleanup decision that decides the fate of 1,936 highly radioactive capsules at Hanford. The Waste Encapsulation Storage Facility (WESF) houses capsules of cesium and strontium in aging concrete pools. The Oregon Department of Energy and others have warned that high radiation levels may undermine the integrity of the concrete at WESF. According to the Oregon Department of Energy’s comments on WESF, removal of capsules to dry storage should be “a top Hanford priority.” The agency has warned that loss of cooling water at WESF could result in a major radioactive release into the environment, endangering workers, the environment, and future generations.

The Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) and the U.S. Department of Energy (Energy) want your input on how to modify WESF to remove the radioactive capsules, and how to build a new facility called the Capsule Storage Area to store capsules in dry casks.

Our message to Ecology and Energy is straightforward:Make removing the capsules from WESF a top priority. If cooling water around the capsules in WESF were to drain in an accident, the facility could potentially release large quantities of radiation into the environment.

Stay in touch with Riverkeeper as we continue to watchdog Hanford cleanup. Check out a recent blog post and follow Riverkeeper on social media (Facebook and Twitter) for the latest on Hanford’s nuclear legacy and cleanup progress.

This product was funded through a grant from Washington State Department of Ecology. While these materials were reviewed for grant consistency, this does not necessarily constitute endorsement by the Department.

We still have no secure site for existing nuclear wastes from reactors except onsite temporary pools. We will never recover from Hanford, Chernobyl, and Fukushima. After construction has generated carbon debt, nuclear reactors will only break even during their operating life for greenhouse gas generation.

Why are we still considering atomic energy? Aside from very limited medical or quality control applications, nuclear chemistry is a net loss for humanity.

We still have no secure site for existing nuclear wastes from reactors except onsite temporary pools. We will never recover from Hanford, Chernobyl, and Fukushima. After construction has generated carbon debt, nuclear reactors will only break even during their operating life for greenhouse gas generation.

Why are we still considering atomic energy? Aside from very limited medical or quality control applications, nuclear chemistry is a net loss for humanity.

Make removing the capsules from WESF a top priority. If cooling water around the capsules in WESF were to drain in an accident, the facility could potentially release large quantities of radiation into the environment. It is extremely important that action be taken as soon as possible to prevent a disaster and slow the leakage of radio activity into the Columbia River.

This Important cleanup decision decides the fate of 1,936 highly radioactive capsules at Hanford. The Waste Encapsulation Storage Facility (WESF) houses capsules of cesium and strontium in aging concrete pools. The Oregon Department of Energy and others have warned that high radiation levels may undermine the integrity of the concrete at WESF. According to the Oregon Department of Energy’s comments on WESF, removal of capsules to dry storage should be “a top Hanford priority.” The agency has warned that loss of cooling water at WESF could result in a major radioactive release into the environment, endangering workers, the environment, and future generations. Need more be said?

We still have no secure site for existing nuclear wastes from reactors except onsite temporary pools. We will never recover from Hanford, Chernobyl, and Fukushima. After construction has generated carbon debt, nuclear reactors will only break even during their operating life for greenhouse gas generation.

Why are we still considering atomic energy? Aside from very limited medical or quality control applications, nuclear chemistry is a net loss for humanity.

Remove cesium and strontium capsules at WESF quickly and safely.
Study the impact of high radiation levels on the concrete at WESF to provide important data that can be used to evaluate risks at other radioactive storage basins.

Make removing the capsules from WESF a top priority. If cooling water around the capsules in WESF were to drain in an accident, the facility could potentially release large quantities of radiation into the environment. Remove cesium and strontium capsules at WESF quickly and safely. Study the impact of high radiation levels on the concrete at WESF to provide important data that can be used to evaluate risks at other radioactive storage basins.

I urge you to consider educating yourself concerning a different type of clean nuclear technology called a Molten Salt reactor. China has taken research information paid for by the United States then defunded in the late 1960s and are now poised to become “suppliers to the world” — pity! This information is not available through mass media because the petroleum industry fears all inexpensive, environmentally friendly energy production as competition. Please check out on YouTube, etc. A great case is made for “molten salt” / LFTR technology as a safe and inexpensive alternative, already created and tested with U.S tax dollars.

A new report from the Stockholm Environment Institute on a controversial fracked gas-to-methanol refinery proposed in Washington state confirms McKibben’s assertion: the Kalama methanol refinery will not help us achieve a low-carbon future or meet the goals in the Paris Climate Accords. According to the report, approving the Kalama methanol refinery “would not appear to be consistent with globally agreed climate goals of keeping warming at less than 2 degrees Celsius.”

Critical public comment period to convince Governor Inslee, and state and local officials, to stop the Kalama methanol refinery and the Kalama Lateral pipeline. The refinery would use more natural gas than all other industry in Washington combined. If we stop this project, we can protect our climate and river communities from decades of fracked gas pollution.